A Birder’s Guide to the Rio Grande Valley

William B. (Brad) McKinney has lived in the Lower Valley since 1972 and has actively birded the region for the past twenty years. He is a high-school administrator who has taught science at the high school and college levels for many years. Brad is a part-time tour guide for Victor Emanuel Nature Tours and currently serves on the Texas Bird Records committee. He is the author of A Checklist of Lower Rio Grande Birds and maintains a local checklist on the seabirds of the Lower Texas Coast. He especially enjoys birding the South Texas brushlands and cloudforests of neighboring Mexico. Brad lives in Ranco Biejo with his wife, Janette, and their son, Will.

James Paton has had a lifelong interest in birds and holds a Masters Degree in ecology from the University of Arizona. He is the Trans-Pecos compiler for North American Birds and is a member of the Texas Bird Records Committee. He’s co-author of a checklist to birds of the El Paso area. Jim lives in El Paso with his wife and two sons, where he works as a high school science teacher.

Barry Zimmer has lived in El Paso for over thirty years and has birded extensively in Texas during that time. He has been a full-time guide for Victor Emanuel Nature Tours for the past twenty-three years. His travels have taken him throughout North America and to many parts of the world. He co-authored Birds of the TransPecos. Barry lives with his wife, Yvonne, and their daughter, Alex.